Hand scraper



March 14, 1961 KRASNER 2,974,428

HAND SCRAPER Filed July 17, 1958 INVEN TOR.

434 MAURKZE' KRASNER B Y 41m; i i-l HAND SCRAPER Maurice Krasner, 315 Spruce St, Glenriew, Ill.

Filed July 17, 1958, Ser. No. 749,108 4 Claims. or. 37-53 This invention relates to a device for the removal of snow, ice, refuse and the like material from walks, driveways, floors, patios, and the like, and it relates more particularly to a manually operated shovel or scraper.

Devices of the type described have found wide-spread use for the removal of refuse, snow, ice and the like from expansive surfaces such as sidewalks, driveways, streets, play yards, patios, floors and the like. For the most part, such devices have been adapted for power operation to lift and carry away the material on the surfaces. In such instances where the expenditure of monies for power operated devices is not justified, attempts have been made to make available a device operating on similar principles for hand operation.

This invention is addressed to a manually operated tool of the type described and to a method of constructing same. Manually operated devices and even some of the power operated devices have been subject to criticism raised because of difficulties experienced in their operation. Generally, it is difiicult to maintain a stabilized position between the edge of the scraper or shovel and the surfaces operated upon. As a result, the edge of the device sometimes comes too close to the surfaces and catches in crevices or on abutments with resulting abuse to the operator and injury to the equipment. Other times, the blade is too distant from the surface with the result that removal is incomplete and more difficult.

It is an object of this invention to produce a simple and efiicient device of the type described which can be fabricated of relatively few, inexpensive parts to produce a low cost structure.

Another object is to produce a device of the type described which can be used interchangeably as a scraper or as a shovel. v

A further object is to produce a device of the type described which is characterized by a sturdy construction and which operates properly to locate the edge of the scraper with reference to the surface for most eflicient and effective removal of material from the surface and which is further characterized by stability in operation and use to enable inexperienced as well as experienced labor to make use of same.

Scrapers usually comprise a blade formed from a planar piece of metal. Efficient use of such scrapers requires that the blade be applied to the surface on which the material has been deposited at a fixed or constant angle. Experience has determined that this angle should be in the neighborhood of 50. if this angle is not maintained, the efficiency of the scraper is reduced and its wear is increased. The scraping blades are somewhat resilient so they tend to bend during 'a'scraping operation. If this bending is substantial it would change the above described angle and would reduce the eificiency of the scraper, unless special precautions are taken. What is needed, therefore, and comprises another object of this invention is a scraper having means thereon for maintaining a fixed angle between the scraper blade and the surface on which material has been deposited.

These and other objects of this invention will become more apparent when read in the light of the accompanying drawings and specification wherein- Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the combined shovel, plow and scraper;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction indicated;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4- 4 of Fig. 2 and looking in the direction indicated, and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to that shown in Fig. 4 but with the device adjusted for a scraping operation.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings, the plow, indicated generally by the reference numeral 10, comprises a support 12. The support includes spaced parallel sides 14. Each side is formed from rod members which are rigidly connected together to form a triangular closed loop which includes a vertical rod, a horizontal rod, and a hypotenuse. It is noted, however, that the shape of the sides of the support is not critical and others are contemplated.

The triangular side of each support is a right triangle, and the upper end in of the hypotenuse .18 of the sides 14 is extended to provide handles 20 for manual operation of the apparatus. Spaced parallel axles 22 and 24 (see Figs. 1 and 3) are connected between the spaced parallel lower horizontal rods or bars 26 of the sides. Wheels 28 are rotatably mounted on the ends of these axles by any conventional means (not shown). The wheels serve two purposes; they permit the apparatus to be moved easily and they hold the support in an erect position so it can serve as a platform, as described below. The wheeled support is useful when the apparatus is used for removing ice chips or Waste products associated with certain industries, but for use in cleaning snow or ice off of frozen walks or driveways in Winter, the apparatus could be mounted on sled runners, and the claims should be construed in that light.

A substantially planar blade formed from comparatively thin steel plate and indicated generally by the reference numeral 30 is directly mounted on the lower portions of the spaced parallel hypotenuse 18 of the sides of the support. The planar blade is substantially rectangular in shape (see Fig. 2) and has spaced parallel edges 32 and 34- (see Figs. 4 and 5). Edge 32 is arcuately bent to form a shovel portion (see Fig. 4) while edge 34- is unbent and functions :as a scraper. Pairs of openings 36 and 38 are formed in the blade 30, as shown in Fig. 2. These openings are adapted to alternately register with openings 40 in the hypotenuse 18 of the sides, so that the blade can be rigidly mounted on the support in two positions. As seen in Fig. 4, to mount blade 36 so the shovel 32 is in operative position, bolts 42 would extend through openings 36 in the blade and through openings 40 in the bar 18. On the other hand, to mount the blade 30 so the scraper portion 34 isin operative position, the same bolts '42 would extend through openings 38 in the blade and through openings 40 in the bar 18 (see Fig. 5 This arrangement permits the apparatus to function either as a shovel, plow, or as a scraper.

As stated above, the blade 3G is directly mounted on the hypotenuse of the sides. The angle 44between the hypotenuse 18 and the horizontal bar 26 on each side is selected to be equal to the angle between the blade and the surface on which'the material being removed has been deposited, which is best suited for efficient operation of the blade. With this arrangement, the support 12, held erect by wheels 28 or by sled runners, serves as a platform, and when the blade 30 is mounted on the hypotenuse of the sides of the support, it will automati- 3 cally assume its optimum angle. Experience has shown that this angle should be in the neighborhood of 50".

A deflecting plate 46 is adjustably mounted on the blade 30. This deflecting plate may be formed from a straight elongated piece of sheet metal which is substantially equal in length to the width of the blade, and is arcuate in cross-section (see Fig. 2). Openings 48 are mounted along one edge of this deflecting plate, and these openings are adapted to be aligned with openings 50 formed in the blade so that a bolt 52 can extend through them, whereby the deflecting plate 46 may be locked on the blade 30. As seen in Fig. 2, there are several possible combinations of openings 50 formed in the blade 30 which can be aligned with openings 48 in the deflecting plate to permit the position of the deflecting plate 46 to be adjusted on the blade.

When the plate 46 is mounted on the blade 30, the edge remote from the edge having openings 48 formed therein projects upwardly from the plan of the blade. In addition, the concave surface of the deflecting plate faces the portion of the blade in operative position and the deflecting plate is mounted so that one or the other of its ends 54- or 56 is nearest to this operative portion of the blade. This adjustment of the deflecting plate 46 controls the side of the apparatus on which the material being removed is to be deposited. The wing nuts 58 which are in threaded engagement with the bolts 52 are very useful because they permit an easy and rapid adjustment of the position of the deflecting plate 46 on the blade 30 (see Fig. 3).

To prevent the edge 34 of the blade 30 from catching in cracks in the walk and the like and thus leading to sudden jarring impacts injurious to the blade and objectionable to the operator, a guide is provided on the back side of the blade in position operatively to engage the surface to follow the contour of the surface and automatically to vary the level of the blade with respect thereto. The guide may be in the form shown embodying a roller 60 having a diameter small by comparison with the size of the blade 30 and which is mounted on the back side of the blade closely adjacent to the edge of the scraping portion. When the apparatus is adjusted for operation as a scraper, the roller 60 operates to reinforce the scraping edge of the blade and to maintain the optimum angle for operation while maintaining the most effective spaced relationship between the scraper edge and the underlying surface. Although the above described wheel guide has been found to be effective in use, it is contemplated that the guide may constitute other elements such as an abutment secured to the back side of the plate or else formed by deformation of the blade and the claims should be so construed.

To use the apparatus, it is only necessary to adjust the blade 30 for the operation desired, i.e. shoveling or scraping. Then the deflecting plate 46 is adjusted to determine the side of the apparatus upon which the material being removed by the apparatus is to be deposited. This done, the handle 20 is grasped and the apparatus is simply pushed through the material.

It is apparent that the apparatus described above is light and economical to manufacture. Furthermore, it is substantially more efficient in the removal of material than conventional shovels.

The invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof as set forth in the claims, and the present embodiment is therefore to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive and it is intended to inclnde'all changes which come within the scope and range of the claims.

I claim:

1. A hand scraper comprising in combination a support, said support comprising laterally spaced apart and interconnected side frame members each of which is in the form of a right triangular section comprising a vertically disposed portion, a horizontally disposed portion interconnected at its rearward end portion to the lower end portion of the vertically disposed portion and a hypotenuse portion interconnected intermediate its ends to the upper end portion of the vertically disposed portion and at its lower end to the forward end of the horizontally disposed portion with portions of the hypotenuse extending rearwardly beyond the rearwardly disposed portion to form handles for manual operation of the scraper, a pair of longitudinally spaced apart axles ex tending crosswise of the horizontally disposed portion in parallel relation and attached thereto and wheels mounted on the ends of the axles for free rotational movement to permit the support to be rolled over the surface upon which it rests with the frame maintained at a predetermined spaced relationship above said surface, a substantially planar reetangularly shaped blade dimensioned to have a width greater than the width of the support and having a substantially flat body portion and an arcuately bent portion in one of its longitudinal end portions to form a shovel portion contiguous with and extending outwardly from the body portion, and means removably mounting the blade onto the support with the body portion resting upon the lower edge portion of the hypotenuse and in parallel relation therewith for support of the blade substantially throughout the major length thereof and with a lower edge portion of the blade extending forwardly beyond the lower edge of the hypotenuse and below the forward edge of the horizontally disposed portion to a level corresponding to the bottom of the wheels to maintain the forward edge portion of the blade in juxtaposed position with the supporting surface and in substantially parallel relation therewith.

2. A hand scraper as claimed in claim 1 which includes means for maintaining a predetermined angle between the scraper portion of the blade and the surface on which the material to be removed is deposited comprising a roller wheel, the diameter of the roller wheel small in comparison to the size of the blade, said roller wheel mounted centrally between the sides of the blade and closely adjacent to the edge of the scraper portion of the blade to prevent the resistance of the material being removed from deflecting the blade and changing the angle between the blade and the surface on which the material has been deposited.

3. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 including a defleeting means adjustably mounted on said blade for defleeting the material being removed from said surface so it is deposited on one side or the other of the apparatus.

4. A hand scraper as claimed in claim 1 in which the blade is formed with a scraper portion in the form of a relatively straight edge parallel with the body portion along one edge of the body portion and with a shovel portion along the other edge of the body portion and means for reversing the position of the blade on the support.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 493,389 Shultz Mar. 14, 1893 1,328,157 Korhonen Jan. 13, 1920 1,415,979 Bedford May 16, 1922 1,867,255 De La Mater July 12, 1932 1,956,295 Lindgren Apr. 24, 1934 1,974,190 Miller Sept. 18, 1934 2,165,314 Stevenson July 11, 1939 2,429,120 Brandt Oct. 14, 1947 2,441,449 Shaw May 11, 1948 2,463,150 Camp Mar. 1, 1949 2,598,952 Weingart June 3, 1952 2,637,261 Wale May 5, 1953 2,772,490 Hnastchenko Dec. 4, 1956 2,785,483 Gajewski Mar. 19, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 154,097 Switzerland July 1, 1932 53,401 Norway Jan. 2, 1934 g ow- 

